Democratic lawmaker criticizes party brand, Pelosi

Ryan made the comment after Democrat Jon Ossoff lost to Republican Karen Handel in Georgia’s hotly contested 6th Congressional District race.

The loss in Georgia followed similar disappointments in special House elections in Kansas and Montana, as well as in South Carolina Tuesday night. But Trump won the district by only 1.5 percentage points in 2016, and his national approval rating now stands below 40 percent.

The frustrated Democrats met in Rice’s office a day earlier to discuss their options as they face long odds of knocking out the woman who has led the Democratic caucus for almost 15 years from minority to majority and back, raised tens of millions of dollars and has had multiple legislative successes.

Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel spent over $50 million between their campaigns, making this the most expensive race of its kind. She has been a great leader, but like every leader, time immemorial, it’s time for people to know when to go.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) brushed off concerns raised by some in the House Democratic Caucus that she is dragging them down in competitive races, saying her legislative and fundraising prowess make up for any downsides to being seen with her.

Several Democratic lawmakers have said Pelosi’s position as a prominent face of the Democratic Party will continue to make winning elections hard.

“The brand is just bad”, the OH lawmaker told CNN’s Don Lemon Wednesday.

Half of Democrats (49 percent) view Pelosi favorably, while 1 in 4 Democrats (26 percent) have an unfavorable view of her.

Democrats came close but still lost two other contested special elections earlier this year for Republican-held seats in conservative Kansas and Montana, and the outcomes in Georgia and SC could put a crimp in the party’s fundraising and candidate recruitment.

As President Donald Trump celebrated Republican victories in two special congressional elections on Wednesday, one man who advised presidents from both parties warned the results “should be a wake-up call for Democrats” that Trump could be on his way to re-election in 2020.

Six women have served in Congress representing Georgia as Democrats since 1940, including Rep. Cynthia McKinney, who served several terms in Congress, most recently from 2005-2007, according to Rutgers University’s Center for American Women and Politics.

Democrats hold 193 seats and need to gain 24 to be in the majority.

The lesson for Democrats is that anti-Trumpism is not enough, at least not at this point.

“The problem will persist for Democrats next year”. But with Democrats hoping to retake the U.S. House or Senate, will they be reluctant to send checks to the site of their recent, bitter disappointment? “It’s not fair or justified, but it’s real”, McIntosh said, the Times reported.

Moulton is one of the House Democrats who has been most vocal in calling for a new generation of leadership. Hammill further criticized Republicans for “demonizing” Pelosi, who he said is the party’s “strongest fundraiser and consensus builder”. Democrats have been chafing in the minority since they were thrust there in 2010 after risky votes in favor of President Barack Obama’s initiatives including the Affordable Care Act.